Arellano, now 32, returns to court April 12 to be arraigned. He pleaded not guilty to the charges in August.

Colton police said McLeod had left a party at an L Street residence on April 20, 2007. While standing with a group of people, they were approached by three men - one with a long firearm - looking for money, police said.

The three men then ran west on L Street to a waiting car. McLeod, who was shot in the head, died the next day at Arrowhead Regional Medical Center in Colton.

A witness in the group recognized one of the alleged robbers as attending the party earlier with a woman, authorities said.

Gina Marie Gomez, the suspected getaway driver, faces murder charges in McLeod's death in a separate case. Gomez, now 27, is being held at West Valley Detention Center in Rancho Cucamonga and is awaiting a preliminary hearing, court records indicate.

Gomez had attended the party earlier in the night with Arellano, said Moremberg. The pair discussed going back to the party to get money with Andrew Ramirez and another man, Matthew Delgado, the detective said.

Back at the party, two of the men got out and Arellano stayed with Gomez while she put on makeup, police say she told them. But when the gun fired, Arellano was not in the car and all three men were running back.

Ramirez later admitted to police his participation as the gunman in the robbery, Moremberg said. Now 24, Ramirez was sentenced in 2009 to life in state prison, according to court records.

On cross-examination from attorney Richard Farquhar, who represented Arellano at the court hearing, Moremberg said police were given descriptions of two of the men as being 5 feet 9 inches tall and weighing about 150 pounds.

The detective agreed that Arellano is "considerably shorter" than 5 feet 9 inches. Two of the three men had asked the group for money, though the detective said he couldn't recall if it was the two men for whom police had descriptions.

Police Detective Shawn McFarland testified that Arellano, Ramirez, Delgado and Gomez were active, documented members of the South Side Colton street gang. McFarland said Arellano gained status with the gang as a result of the alleged crimes.

The prosecution and defense both stipulated, for this hearing only, that McFarland was a qualified gang expert and qualified to testify about South Side Colton.

On cross-examination, McFarland said he had not personally completed a gang card on Arellano, though he was present when another officer contacted the defendant. He also had not personally interviewed Ramirez, Delgado and Gomez, he said.

Delgado, now 24, is a fugitive with an arrest warrant, according to court records. Colton police have also identified him as a suspect in the shooting death of Ramiro Ygermo Martinez, a witness in McLeod's shooting.

Martinez, 20, of Colton, was shot July 2, 2008, at Veterans Park in Colton. Police said Delgado confronted Martinez at the park, shot him and left him lying face-down next to a bicycle.